Just Fry's Luck
by takeflight
Summary: Fry's comfortable life in the future is about to come crashing down around him.
1. Chapter 1

Fry awoke in the middle of the night to the sound of tapping on his bedroom window. He got up to open it.  
"Bender?" He asked in surprise.  
The shiny metal robot clambered in from the window sill and jumped onto Fry's floor with a thud. He wiped the dust off his metal hands before speaking.  
"Sorry to wake you buddy, but the RoboCops are after me again. They think I'm hiding illegal Algerian whiskey in my apartment."  
"Are you?"  
Bender opened his torso and took out a bottle of whiskey; he took a long swig from it, burped, then returned it to his torso. "Nope. Damn Robotists always going after innocent robots. Mind if I crash here tonight?"  
"Be my guest" Fry shrugged, and the robot jumped into his bed in thanks. Fry pulled the blanket from the bed and took it to a nearby couch, setting it down and snuggling underneath. A few minutes passed and Fry was just drifting off back to sleep again, when a loud knock on the door startled them both.  
"Wha wha-" Bender sat up in bed, locking eyes with Fry on the couch who had done the same. Bender leapt off the bed and huddled into a nearby closet, gesturing for Fry to go get it. Fry, rubbing his eyes in sleepiness, slowly dragged himself to the door.  
"Leela, what are you doing here?" Fry's eyes snapped wide awake at the sight of the beautiful woman. "Hello Fry. This isn't a bad time, is it?" Leela asked in a small voice. "No, of course not. Come on in" He said, giving his friend a wide berth to enter. She walked in slowly, taking in the shadowy interior of Fry's apartment. Fry, suddenly aware of the pile of unwashed clothes lying on the floor, and the dirty dishes left carelessly on the coffee table, felt his face grow hot. "Sorry it's such a dump, I guess I was too pooped yesterday to clean up. Here-" He shifted the blanket off the couch where he had been about to sleep moments ago. "You can sit down if you like." Leela smiled in appreciation and took a seat on the couch. Fry stood around for a few seconds, then awkwardly sat down next to her, taking care to maintain a respectful distance. He held his sweaty hands together in his lap, wondering what had brought the pretty woman into his apartment in the middle of the night. Not that he cared. It was nice to be near her.  
"Fry, I didn't know who else to talk to about this. I was going to go to Amy, but she's out visiting her parents on Mars. And we both know Bender's kind of a jerk –"  
"Ay!" Fry and Leela swung their heads around to the muffled cry which came out of Fry's closet. Leela turned to Fry in questioning; his shook his head dismissively. "Don't worry, it's just –"  
"Shhhhh" an insistent sound whistled out of the closet, interrupting him. In the moonlight Fry could see Bender shaking his head from inside the closet. He was slightly confused. Why wouldn't Bender want Leela to know he was there? He quickly dismissed the thought from his mind, taking in the pleasure of Leela's dark purple hair and sparkling eye glinting in the moonlight. He gave her a small smile, she returned the gesture; his heart thumped.  
"I'm here for you Leela. You know you can tell me anything, and I'll try to help you in any way I can."  
Leela tilted her head at one side, feeling a wave of gratitude for this sweet dumb kid. She knew she could trust him, as stupid as he was, and the thought comforted her. She took a deep breath, preparing to lay on him the awful news which had been haunting her for several days.  
"Well, ok. You know how my parents are hideous mutant freaks who have to live underground because the sight of them will make any normal human want to puke their guts out?"  
"Uh huh." Fry didn't know why she was relaying common knowledge to her. But wow, her lips looked pretty in the dark. Luscious.  
"And you know how they used up their only visit to the surface last September to come see me at the museum of history but I couldn't because I was busy being a superhero and saving the city with you and Bender?"  
"Yeah, I remember."  
"You know it!" A small voice echoed from the closet, followed by a burp. Fry glanced at the closet briefly, but Leela did not seem to hear it.  
"Well, ever since then I've been feeling guilty about them not ever being able to see the surface because of me. And well, my job here at Planet express has always kept me busy above ground, so I hardly ever get to visit them. Do you see what I'm trying to say, Fry?"  
Fry was gazing into her face, mesmerized. He blinked when she repeated his name. "Fry?"  
"Oh, uh, sorry, I was distracted for a moment there. You were saying?"  
Leela sighed sadly, looking down. Her slender fingers toyed with the ends of her silky purple locks, something Fry had never seen her do before. His eyes suddenly narrowed, focusing on her. Something was wrong. Something had happened.  
"I… I've handed in my resignation. As of next week, I'll no longer be the captain on the crew of Planet Express. I'm going to go home and live the rest of my life underground with my parents."  
A thick silence immediately choked the room; Fry was speechless.  
"Don't tell anyone though" Leela broke it a few moments later, looking Fry straight in the eyes. "Not until all the papers have been finalized. The professor says it may take a few days. Oh Fry, tell me, do you think I am making the right decision?"  
Her eyes were imploring his for reassurance; what could Fry say? "Yes. Of course, you want to be with your parents. "  
He felt her arms wrap around his neck, and for some reason couldn't take pleasure in the fact. His stomach felt like it did when he drank too much slurm juice.  
"Thankyou Fry. I knew I could count on you. Well, I guess I'll go get my bags packed then. See you tomorrow for our last mission"  
Her lips touched his cheek- or did they? Fry suddenly felt cold all over. Distantly, he acknowledged her leaving the apartment, the swish of the door sliding closed. The descending silence was violently shattered again as Bender collapsed out of the closet, his whiskey bottle smashing on the floor. Bender sobbed loudly; his cries echoing though the apartment. Fry didn't care. He heard Bender whining that that was his last bottle, and that Fry should help clean it up, but Fry's mind was too distracted to do anything other than lean forward, hold his head in his hands and stare blankly at the floor between his feet.  
Leela. Leaving Planet Express. Going away to live underground with her parents. Away from him. Away from here.  
Forever.  
Fry didn't know what to think about that.


	2. Chapter 2

The next day Fry entered the Planet Express building with his hands in his pockets and a somber look on his face. It looked just the same as it always did: the ship was making various humming noises as Amy ran through some routine maintenance checks, Zoidberg was slicing open an alien on the coffee table with one claw, sipping on steaming hot coffee with the other, and Bender was shouting instructions to a group of confused looking penguins through a megaphone. Fry walked past them all and around to the other side of the ship, the one which faced away from the door. Leela was there, checking something off on a clipboard. Nibbler was at her feet, gnawing on her right boot. As he stood there Leela looked up; she smiled and waved him forward. Fry didn't waste any time.

"Fry, you're just the man I've been waiting for." She announced, beaming.  
Fry's heart skipped a beat.  
"Well.. anything for you Leela.. actually, about what you said last night, I've been thinking-"  
Leela interrupted him, stooping down for a second and coming back up with a leash on her hands. She pushed it into Fry's hands. "I need you to take Nibbler for a walk. The poor thing hasn't been outside all day and I think he's going a bit crazy."  
They both looked down to see Nibbler gnawing incessantly on Leela's boot. She shook him free and he growled, then rubbed his face against her leg, making purring noises. After a moment he was tooth deep in Leela's boot again. Leela frowned, leaning her head towards Fry and cupping her hand to his ear.  
"Just between you and me," she whispered- Fry could smell cherry on her lips- "I think it's time we had the little guy neutered." At the sound of the "N" word Nibbler made a shrill GROWR sound, and Leela immediately knelt and gave him a reassuring pet on the neck. "Aww Nibbler, you know mommy loves you and would do anything to make you happy right? Aww snookie pookie wookie." Nibbler made a series of gleeful purring sounds, and Fry, watching, found himself suppressing the urge to gag. He forced a smile as Leela turned back to him.  
"Thanks Fry."  
Fry didn't move. Leela went back to her clipboard, apparently contented. A slow second passed. Then another. Nibbler was growing restless. After about a minute Leela glanced back to see Fry and Nibbler still right there, and Fry looking oddly expectant.  
"What are you waiting for?" Leela blurted out. Fry hesitated. The words were on the tip of his tongue, but for some reason Fry couldn't say them. Another awkward moment passed. Fry finally let his shoulders slump, the moment gone. "Nothing." He said, and started towards the door.  
About halfway there Leela called back, "Wait!"  
Fry turned around excitedly, "Yes Leela?"  
"Could you pick up some milk on your way out? We're fresh out."  
"And some hot dogs!" Zoidberg added from somewhere in the distance.  
Fry groaned in annoyance. "Fine. Come on, you mangy little rodent" Fry tugged on nibbler's leash, and the two of them exited the building.

Leela, watching, tilted her head in confusion. That kid was acting odd lately, it was like he didn't want to be here at all. Not like it was any of Leela's business, of course. She hoped, idly, that he would shape up before she was set to leave the surface. The last thing Leela wanted was for him to ruin her last days on the surface with his unprofessional work attitude. In fact, Leela realized as she glanced around the building with a critical eye, a lot of her co-workers had been slacking off lately. What was wrong with everyone? Zoidberg, slicing up company aliens during company time, when they all knew he was supposed to be helping Amy run maintenance checks. Amy, gossiping on her phone half the time with that wimpy boyfriend Kif of hers, whenever she thought nobody was looking. Bender, doing God knew what with a group of penguins by the side of the building. Leela strained her ears. Was he teaching them Portuguese? God, this place was falling apart.  
She pressed her fingers to her temple; she was getting a headache. She was about to get back to her clipboard, the only one of them actually informed and doing her job as per usual, when all of a sudden, the Professor hobbled down some stairs and opened his arms widely, his inch-thick spectacles sliding lazily down his nose. Here it comes, Leela thought sarcastically. As it turned out, her prediction was right.  
"Good News Everyone." The professor called out. "You're not going on your next mission."  
Leela groaned; of course. Everyone else let out out a loud cheer. Instead of huddling with the others to hear the whos, whats, and whys of the latest mission not-happening, Leela went back to her clipboard, determined to finish her work. And where was Fry? She looked at her watch: 2:30pm. Where was Fry? Surely it didn't take this long to buy some milk. The one good thing about leaving the surface, she decided, was no longer having to be around such incompetent people. Especially Fry. If this is how long it took him to get a simple bottle of milk, then God help him. Fry's life would surely fall to pieces when she left.


	3. Chapter 3

Fry emerged from the planet express building and walked into the sunlight outside. At the end of the leash he was carrying, nibbler followed along. Fry was annoyed, and hurt. He wanted Leela to notice him. To care that he was struggling with the fact that she was going to leave. He hadn't slept since he heard the news, he had barely eaten, and stubble was growing unkempt across his jawline. His bright orange hair was messy atop his head, and his clothes had the unpleasant aroma of week old pizza slices.

He howled curses as a passing motorist ran through a puddle near him, splashing both Fry and Nibbler with muddy water.  
"Ahhh, look where you're walking, jerk!" The motorist cried out, swerving sharply to the left before disappearing into the distance. Fry shook his head in disgust and kept walking, figuring there was little point in following him. Not like this day could get much worse.

At that moment he felt resistance on the leash. He stopped to see Nibbler sitting, a round black rock sitting beside him. Great. Perfect. Just what he needed, Fry thought bitterly. He pulled on a plastic glove and was kneeling down to do his civic duty, when a thought occurred to him. This was what he was. A crap cleaner. A guy who picks up other people's messes, and never complains. This was why Leela didn't care about him, this was why she was leaving the surface! It wasn't because of her parents, or not entirely anyway. It was because of Fry, and the fact that he let himself be pushed around so much by everyone. This was why she didn't like him.. didn't respect him... Well, no more! he decided firmly. He threw down the leash and stood up, peeling off the plastic gloves and throwing them far off into the distance, where the motorist had raced moments before. Fry wasn't going to be anyone's crap cleaner anymore, not Zoidberg's, not Bender's, not the Professor's, and certainly not some mangy little runt who couldn't stop chewing and pooping if his life depended on it. Nibbler was now chewing on Fry's boot, just as he had Leela's.

"You're a waste of space, you know that?" Fry muttered to him. Nibbler purred affectionately. Fry shook the little alien off, then paced towards the supermarket. He had some milk to purchase.

Nibbler trudged behind him, laughing.


End file.
